How I saved my business when a supplier fell through

What were you hearing from them?

Oh heaps of stories. That the local authorities had seized the factory, and so on. Just a range of stories. We needed to do something.

So what was your response?

We realised we had to do something to counter this. So we started looking at similar types of products, and found a company that could do custom mouldings. We produced some packaging with a similar design and found that while it wasn’t the same quality, it was definitely more cost effective and I think that’s what gave it a lot more attractiveness.

Price is always an issue, right? Especially with the type of products that we’re dealing with and which are biodegradable. But when we managed to get this product, we got a lot more market share.

Did you have a backup plan?

We had backup suppliers, we had already identified them. We were fortunate enough to have some good deals in place, and then we switched over and got everything ready.

Your supply partners are critical. We always maintain we’ve had the best supply partners, using the best technology, and that’s something we’re passionate about. They really need to have the same sense of urgency that’s in our own business.

I’m always looking at developing in new technology and industry, and we do visit our factories quite regularly and make sure that the standards and processes are up to scratch. We’re fortunate we have this economy of scale, where we can influence our supply chain. We can go to them and ask them to implement our environmental practices and they can come on board.

I’m quite passionate about this whole process. I want to be really transparent and open about it, and that’s what was influencing this whole development.

So what do you think was the biggest lesson you learned during that whole experience?

Just how critical it is to have partners that are reliable and can deliver on what they promise. Good communication is the key, and I have to reinforce that to our suppliers. We’re extremely quick to respond to any enquiries, and our suppliers understand that and have the same urgency that we do. They need to know that when we send out a request, we need a response within hours, not days; even minutes.

Good suppliers are the successful people who have put that mentality into practice.